Custom Bikes Of The Week: 23 September, 2018

The Yamaha XSR700 gets the looks to match its performance, Paton releases a street legal version of Michael Dunlop’s IoM TT bike, and a Yamaha MT-03 scrambler that channels the Dakar-winning XT500.

The street-legal Paton S1-R If you watched the Isle of Man TT this year, you were undoubtedly blown away by 120.601 mph average speed that Michael Dunlop recorded on his Paton S1-R. It was a blisteringly fast run around the mountain course on a unique machine. And now, you can buy one from Paton to have a go yourself—with signals and all.

Released to celebrate Paton’s 60th anniversary, the S1-R is a street-legal replica of Dunlop’s race winner. Powered by a tweaked version of Kawasaki’s 650 twin, the S1-R develops 80 hp thanks to high-compression pistons, clever head work and a Power Commander. Suspension is top notch, fully adjustable stuff from Öhlins, and braking is tackled by Brembo.

Beneath that gorgeous bodywork lies a tubular steel trellis frame that delivers an extremely stable and communicative chassis. And because it was competing in the lightweight class, this green beastie tips the scales at a scant 158 kg (348 lbs).

Pricing is a touch high at $34,000, but for those dollars you’re getting a proven race winner—and easily one of the prettiest crotch rockets on the market today. [More]

Two custom Yamaha XSR700s by Gasoline Motor Co. Talk to anyone who’s ridden the Yamaha XSR700, and you’ll soon hear how great the bike performs. Powered by a 655cc parallel twin, it’s a punchy, nimble and manageable little machine. But it doesn’t tend to score a lot of points in the looks department.

Enter Australia’s Gasoline Motor Co.

With two XSR700s to hand, Gasoline decided to enhance all of the good and replace all that’s bad. The crew started by ditching the stock subframes, and fitted up custom hooped units from Cognito Moto.

If the body kits look a touch familiar, they should: they’re JVB Moto units, with slight modifications to deliver a refined hooligan look. New top clamps were designed and machined up in-house, with Motogadget Motoscope Mini speedos integrated. The ignition is now a keyless m.lock unit and the mirrors came from the Motogadget catalog too. The seat perched on that new tail is a bespoke unit, covered in perforated hide from some old Porsche seats.

In the performance department, little needed to be done. Of course, that didn’t stop the lads from sourcing out a new exhaust from SC-Project. Not only does it add a touch of oomph but delivers a soundtrack befitting the new looks. [More]

Ducati 999S by Vengine and Helmade Built to run the 1/8th mile sprints at Glemseck, ‘Helmade Noir’ is a German 999S build from a the custom shop Vengine and the helmet customizer Helmade.

The 80s neon color scheme is inspired by ‘neo-noir’ films like Blade Runner and Ghost In The Shell—and to my eyes is one of the prettiest paint jobs we’ve seen in a while. But to compete in the sprints you need more than fancy lacquer, so this Ducati has been tweaked to deliver speed. With the help of a custom exhaust using Diavel pipes and a SC-Project can, this sprinter develops 136 hp at the rear wheel.

To keep it planted and running in a straight line, the swingarm and shock has been swapped with an Öhlins-equipped setup from a 1098S. And at the pointy end, an Aprilia RSV4 has surrendered its forks.

To keep things relatively simple, the Aprilia’s front wheel was carried over too, but both hoops have been re-shod with slicks. The handlebars and rearsets are bespoke CNC’d bits, fitted for a more aggressive tuck, and the tailpiece is also a one-off—a carbon fiber unit built to match Helmade Noir’s gorgeous snorkels. [More]

Honda CX500 by Luuc Muis The ‘flying brick’ Beemers and Honda’s CX500 ‘plastic maggot’ are now emerging as starting points for absolute showstoppers. We’re seeing more and more builders turn to yesteryear’s neglected iron to create masterpieces, and this CX500 cafe is the latest to steal our breath.

Luuc Muis started off with a rendering and a Windjammer fairing-equipped 1978 CX500 in his driveway, and over the next 18 months, changed virtually everything. The stock subframe is long gone and in its place is an all-aluminum racer’s perch. The tank has been hammered, shortened 5cm and elegantly rolled smooth on the English wheel before being treated to a black-to-white fade.

Up front the Honda’s stock forks were also binned and in their place, an upside down set of stanchions from a Gixxer thou have been fitted. In the rear, with the subframe gone, a monoshock conversion nails things down in the looks department. The electrics posed a bit of a nightmare, but hard work paid off as barely any spaghetti remains.

Luuc finished his CX build just a few weeks ago and rode it out to Bikes and Boards in Zandvoort where, judging from the shots we’ve seen, he had the classiest ride of all. [More]

Yamaha MT-03 by RH Motorcycles Few things are better than a custom scrambler that takes off-road performance as seriously as style. And this Yamaha MT-03 from the Netherlands ticks both of those boxes with big old splotches of mud.

Designed to pay homage to Yamaha’s Dakar-winning XT500, Roy Holtman pulled out all of the stops to make sure the MT-03 won’t balk at rough terrain. The suspension at both ends has been upgraded with units from Wilbers to add travel and cushion, and there’s a beefy bash plate too—because Roy is a fan of Big Air.

The engine was treated to a less restrictive DNA intake and new Bosch injectors, and a custom RVS exhaust follows the kinks of the Yami’s frame before exiting through a set of SuperTrapp cones.

For extra grip, Miller Custom Upholstery has redone the seat in suede. And if you look carefully under the luggage rack, you’ll spot an integrated tool pouch that can double as a pillion if you insert a custom-cut piece of foam. The cockpit has been upgraded with a set of Nekken fat-bars and an Acewell digital speedo was wired up to reduce visual clutter. [More]